n 1980, Coe baseball player Mark Parker had a slugging percentage of 923. To put that statistic into proper perspective, the Major League slugging record is .847 and it's held by Babe Ruth.
In his senior year, Mark hit 13 home runs, one for every seven turns at bat. On the day his number was retired, he hit a grand slam homer. When the Kohawks beat Lawrence for the Midwest Conference championship, Mark hit four home runs in Coe's two wins. His memorable senior batting average of .461 was down from his sophomore batting average of .538, which led the nation's collegiate players much of that season.
Mark's remarkable skill on the diamond was recognized with four All Conference awards, three NCAA Division III All-America selections, and three NCAA All District selections.
Such stratospheric numbers usually alert professional scouts, but Mark chose a career in teaching and coaching rather than professional baseball, even though there was a member of the family in the business, namely his uncle, Major League manager and coach Salty Parker. Mark has been a teacher and coach at Dubuque Senior High School. He is currently at New Hartford, Iowa, High School.
But the baseball diamond wasn't the only place that Parker made his mark in Coe athletics. He came to Coe from Joliet Catholic High School because he felt Division III was the level on which he could play in three sports.
He did just that. In football he won three letters playing quarterback, and in basketball he won three letters as a guard. He fulfilled his ambition to learn and enjoy three different sports with lasting distinction.
In the tradition of hundreds of Coe alumni, Mark has made a career of teaching young people to enjoy athletics and to perform to the best of their ability. For this reason, it is a particular pleasure to recognize Mark Parker as a member of the Kohawk Athletic Hall of Fame.
